


Softly as a Promise

by KeanBlade



Series: Shades of Rose [3]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Jutsu Gone Wrong, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Senju Tobirama Needs a Hug, Snow Leopard!Tobirama, Suboptimalsibling!Hashirama, Uchiha Madara's Hair - Freeform, alive!Izuna, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-26
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-10-28 14:44:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20780300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeanBlade/pseuds/KeanBlade
Summary: Konoha is founded; Tobirama's efforts to heal Izuna only moments after he sought to strike him down enough to crack open the door to peace, which was all that Hashirama needed to change everything. But even now a year after the founding Tobirama struggles to find a way to connect with others- especially the one he wants to know most until a seal goes wrong and might give him the chance he needs.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LunarWarrior098](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LunarWarrior098/gifts).

> Had some computer problems which has messed with my update rate, but should be back on track! (fingers crossed)

Tobirama recoiled, the light from the corrupted summons-sage seal blinding even in the well-lit lab; he snatched desperately at the chakra suppression tags, lunging towards Kagami and Izuna who were both looking at the light with total shock. The tags slapped into Izuna and Kagami (thank the gods he had good aim) but he didn’t stop to see their reactions, spinning to face the seal, hands already snapping though hand signs as fast as he could form them; the reaction was spreading, twisting the shape of the air around it as it ate outwards and sucking in chakra around it like a whirlpool. He _had_ to get it under control, it probably wouldn’t be able to brake the lab seals but Izuna and Kagami had no protection and no way to get out fast enough unless he slowed it down (they couldn’t use hiraishin, his plan for things like this but they didn’t include observers), he just wished he had Mito’s chakra chains… they would be useful here. The seal twisted out, writhing as it tore through the lab, shredding the chair and tables (_this_ was why he left everything truly valuable in sealed chests when not using it); he had a bare second to brace before it slammed into him and taring pain seared though his chest, blood looking almost yellow in the strange chakra light. Then the chakra crashed over him and he was lost.

* * *

Kagami was frozen in shock as Tobirama-sensei collapsed, surrounded by a flood of bright light that didn’t quite hide the blood on the lab floor. He- he hadn’t- Izuna said it would be ok! He hadn’t intended to interrupt Tobirama-sensei in the middle of a experiment, he knew he wasn’t supposed to do that, but Izuna said it would be ok, and he- he- he- The light faded and Kagami threw himself forward to Tobirama’s side, trying to force down the part of him that wanted to freeze at the sight of the deep tears in clawed into Tobirama’s chest by what ever it was that he had been working on- whatever they had interrupted and set off. “_Kagami!_ Put pressure on his chest, I’m going to get help” Kagami nodded a little, he knew how to do this, he _did_; he didn’t have to do it for very long, just until Izuna brought back help. (he could do this)

* * *

Madara was slumped in the couch in Hashirama’s office having abandoned his own work about the time one of the office runners burst into tears over the Hokage’s unwillingness to focus and constant questions; Hashirama needed his daily dose of attention and Tobirama was in the lab today so it fell to Madara to deal with it (it was _so_ much easier to keep him happy with two people), such a waste of time except that if no one did it Hashirama would get distracted by his confusion over paper (Madara didn’t really understand it, Tobirama had tried to explain it at one point, something about Hashirama no quite getting why the plants in the paper didn’t resonate with his mokuton, that made no sense to Madara as Hashirama seemed to have no problem with other things but- whatever. Either way if left alone Hashirama would spend hours making origami flowers out of paperwork and blinking in surprise when Tobirama los his temper; honestly, Madara had never given the younger man enough credit for patience but between Hashirama’s absurdity and Izuna’s assholery he was a damn saint).

“Paperwork Hashirama” he said without looking up, he didn’t need to know that Hashirama had wilted and was pouting as he unfolded to paper he was supposed to be working on muttering under his breath about _“it want’s to be a flower, it’s supposed to be a flower, I was helping it be a flower again”_ which Madara ignored so that he didn’t scream; seriously, how did Tobirama- a fluctuation in a chakra made Madara’s head snap up, he was no Tobirama but his own sensors abilities were good enough to feel that (though in all honestly probably anyone with _any_ chakra sense- any shinobi- should have been able to sense that) and place it “Madara, what-“ he held up a hand and rushed to the window looking out towards the labs, he couldn’t see- wait, Madara jumped back right as Izuna catapulted through the window panting hard “_Tobirama_\- lab accident- Kagami’s watching him- hurt-“ neither Madara nor Hashirama stayed to see what Izuna was going to finish both flying out of the tower as fast as possible.

Madara hit the building first- he was faster than Hashirama- and threw himself inside after a quick examination showed that the building looked unscathed; inside a huge eyed Kagami was doing his best to stem the bleeding from the threes taers Tobirama’s chest with little success. Madara felt his blood run cold, he- he wasn’t _close _to Tobirama per-say, but he- he- now wasn’t the time to think about this. He dropped next to Kagami looking over the pale Senju, “What happened?” he asked as Hashirama darted through the door and dropped next to his brother, hands already glowing green as his face hardened into concentration (Hashirama wasn’t the best healer, Tobirama himself was better at anything that required tight control, but he was _very_ good at forcing regrowth in people and in plants as long as you weren’t to fussed about aesthetics and nothing delicate was hurt). “Kagami” he prompted, running his hands gently over Tobirama’s torso, the boy licked his lips, eyes huge and afraid as he slowly explained; _God **damn it** Izuna_, he should _know _better than to interrupt Tobirama in his lab, Tobirama as certainly made it clear to everyone that he worked on high risk projects, _what to **fuck** had Izuna been thinking?!_

Hashirama’s face was easing and Madara could see the wounds healing over, the white glint of bone no longer visible and- his fingers brushed something soft as he checked over the albino’s head, something _too_ soft and. what. _what_? there were ears in Tobirama’s hair, correction, there was _cat_ ears in Tobirama’s hair. Pale gray against white hair and slightly spotted with darker gray, was there- Madara brushed his hands down Tobirama’s body (doing his best to ignore the way it felt, Tobirama was- _no!_) checking for any other anomalies; he didn’t have claws but his fingernails were black and thick and would probably work as claws if enough pressure was applied, and there was- there was a _tail_, now that he knew what to look for he had no idea how he had missed it given it’s extreme length and… well… there wasn’t any other way to put it, _fluffy-ness_. “Hashirama. Hashirama, um. your brother. He, ah, look.” Hashirama, who had just been sitting back as his brother’s chest was almost completely healed up now, started and stared at the fluffy tail reaching out and _yanked _on it. “_Hashirama!!_” Madara yelled, horrified, and Tobirama gave a pained yelp/hiss and twisted away from his older brother, somehow twisting around Madara to put the older man between him and Hashirama. Hashirama and Madara froze, to confused and startled by the sudden movement to really know what to do but Madara, Madara was getting pissed; “What the _fuck!?_ Why did you do that? It probably hurt! What the fuck Hashirama?” the faint whimpering from Tobirama behind him was so not helping his temper.

Hashirama wilted, “I just wanted to see if it was connected…” he moped sulkily, and Madara gaped at him “The FUCK!? Of course it’s ‘connected’ you ass!” but his voice petered out as Tobirama pushed against his back, was he- was he _nuzzling_ Madara’s hair? ….what? but he was still whimpering a little too, which was making Madara _really pissed_, he _hated_ that small hurting sound (and wasn’t totally sure how to handle the fact that the albino was hiding behind him) and wanted to make it _stop_. He reached back carefully without taking his eyes off of Hashirama, who was fidgeting guiltily, but his eyes were focused on Tobirama behind Madara and his fingers were twitching; Madara didn’t trust the other man not to yank Tobirama’s new tail again if he had the chance, so he didn’t look back as he reached, trying to find something to pat gently only to jerk as he felt Tobirama nudge his head into Madara’s hand. He did his best to pat gently at the younger man and was really relived when Izuna appeared in the doorway with a healer- Ayme, a Senju that was good, some Uchiha were still uncomfortable with the ‘White Ghost’- both of them staring at the scene in confusion.

“Madara-sama?” Ayme said quietly, Madara huffed “Tobirama got caught in an accident, will you look at him Hashirama already healed to worst of it I think, but he’s still whimpering a little.” She nodded slowly and approached them on the floor carefully, lowering herself when she got close and coming at them from slightly to the side; to Madara’s relief Tobirama allowed to woman to get close enough to actually scan him and finish taking care of the new scars on his chest. “Izuna, go get Mito. She’s mostly likely to make some sense of this.” Madara said, “But-“ Izuna whined and Madara glared at him “You’re the reason this happened, you idiot, go fucking help!” Izuna sulked abut did as he was told which was good enough for Madara right now. “Well” said Ayme “you healed the wounds on his chest Hashirama-sama- which is good, they could have killed him- but you.. well, it maybe could have been better. They’re healed but they probably hurt a fair amount and probably will ache sometimes for the rest of his life; most human bodies aren’t designed like yours and what ever happened, his physiology has changed somewhat- it’s not just the.. ears and tail. And claws. There’s also a slight change to his bone density and blood count, minor skull shifting in the nasal passages and tiny changes in the chest. I’m assuming those things also conform with the snow leopard physique.”

Madara rubbed at his face “And his chakra?” he asked, and the healer grimaced a little “I have no idea, he _should _still have access to it though it might have changed a little, it’s like he’s ever so slightly in sage mode honestly. I’m pretty sure that if he gets his full faculty back he will be able to use chakra as he always have- can probably still use it now if he can think like that- but I’m not… sure when and how that will happen.” Madara frowned, that was _very_ concerning indeed. “And his sensing?” he asked, she shrugged “That’s normal as far as I can tell, he’s a natural sensor so it’s not something he has to consciously tap into. I suspect he has a _much_ bigger problem with headaches, the biggest concern as far as that goes is that Tobirama-sama uses a small fraction of chakra on a constant basis to maintain full function and reduce his pain, Tobirama-sama’s life was.. not easy on him.” Madara pressed his lips together hard, frustration churning in him at that, he hadn’t realized that Tobirama was _that_ natural a sensor or that the younger man had somehow ended up that badly hurt over his life; it was not good, Madara already _hated_ the faint whimper, he didn’t see how he was supposed to deal with hearing it for however long it took to get Tobirama back to normal. (He was ignoring that this assumed that he would see much of Tobirama, he couldn’t deal with the implications of that right now.)

Hashirama shifted twitchily, his eyes focused behind Madara of his brother; but Madara _knew_ that expression, that was the one Hashirama got when his empathy- always low- dropped to the point that he didn’t think through everyone else at _all_, this was the look of a brother who wouldn’t think not to pull on Tobirama’s new tail. _For fucks sake_. “Hashirama.” The stern voice from the door startled Hashirama out of his staring and whipping around to look at Mito standing in the door, “Izuna told me what happened. Kagami, you were there as well? good. Tell me. Husband, take Tobirama home, I’m guessing he is non-verbal?” Ayme nodded, “Seems to be working on instinct right now, though I don’t know how high his function is.” The redhead sighed “Alright, tell me what you’ve found. Everyone else out.” Not about to argue with the one person Madara was fully willing to admit intimidated him (though Touka definitely was up there, he _adored_ her, she was so wonderfully vindictive) the Uchiha stood and hauled Hashirama to his feet as well (Tobirama mewled faintly behind him, why person leaving? Had done wrong?) and stomping over to the door snagging his brother on the way out. It was past time for Madara to have a _long_ conversation with his brother; he was fucking done with Izuna fucking with his formal rival, it was annoying and childish when it wasn’t getting hurt, but for it to have gone far enough that he would end up interrupting Tobirama in a lab? Nope. Madara should have put a stop to this a while ago. (and now Tobirama was paying for his unwillingness to deal with his little brother’s battiness, _fuck_)

(**Tobirama didn’t like loud-oak he wanted warm-cloves back cool-salt was nice but warm-cloves was better small-kit-nutmeg wasneed tendcurl to stop sad. Then find warm-clove had done wrong to leave find out what wrong and make good. be good. was wrongfreack not right. could pretend? hurt. wanted warm-cloves warm-cloves not want him never want him wrongfreak**)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I write fast and don't edit much- this is a place for me to not have to worry too much about perfection and just enjoy it- so things can be mangled at times. (I've got a wonky brain that can't see symbols as well, so I frequently can't even see mistakes) That's not something that's likely to change any time soon, so if imperfect writing puts you off this probably isn't for you!


	2. Chapter 2

_Fucking Izuna!_ Madara wanted to _kill_ his little brother. Yesterday had turned into a shit show of epic proportions, not only was there the lab accident- which was going to take Tobirama out of commission for a while, if the younger man had been resting he would have been pleased (Tobirama needed a nap) but this…- but the conversation about _not_ _being a dick_ with Izuna had spiraled into the biggest fight they had had in a while. Honestly! What the fuck was wrong with him?! (and this after Izuna had even seemed concerned about Tobirama) Madara was not forgetting the Uchiha and if Izuna was so worried about their clan being ignored than he should have been ok with Madara offering to hand him the headship, if the problem was with Tobirama- and Madara was sure it was, at least in part- than his brother should be old enough to _get over_ his stupid and largely one-sided feud; Tobirama certainly didn’t seem at all inclined to keep it going- he had no hurt pride though, having not only beaten Izuna but also healed him- and just put up with Izuna’s BS silently and tiredly (Madara hated the fact that Tobirama was ok with just putting up with it, he knew the younger man had a _hell_ of a temper when railed and Madara just didn’t understand why he never seemed to get mad on his own behalf).

The Uchiha dragged in a deep breath, this was not the best way to go into the tower where he was positive Hashirama was going to piss him off within minutes. Damnit. True to expectation stepping onto the top floor of the Tower was an instant headache when he heard Hashirama wailing about something and stomped into the Hokage’s office only to loose it when he saw that Hashirama had somehow cornered the younger Senju with mokuton and Tobirama was looking not only uncomfortable, but also something akin to afraid. Madara didn’t recognize the rumbling growl that came out of him as he stormed over to shove Hashirama away from his little brother, planting himself between the two Senju (trying to ignore the warmth in his chest as the cessation of the hissing from Tobirama as soon as he was between them and he hated the small whimpers that still sipped out occasionally) “What the _fuck_ Hashirama?!” Madara yelled, furious. Hashirama pouted “I just wanted to pet him. He won’t let me Madara! He’s my younger brother, he’s supposed too!” Would Tobirama _really_ be sad if Madara killed his older brother? Because Madara really, really wanted to kill him (that was so messed up. And not really new if the Uchiha was being honest, he had seen the look on Tobirama’s face when Hashirama grabbed him into one of Hashirama’s suffocation hugs, it was not a happy look- which, if Tobirama was dealing with chronic pain that probably _hurt_ didn’t it?).

“He’s not ‘supposed’ to do anything! He doesn’t owe you anything Hashi! For fucks sake.” Madara shook himself and turned away from his oldest friend and looked at Tobirama; the younger man was sitting back on his heels his long (seriously, that thing was _long_, four feet long, long) tail wrapped around his feet and panting slightly, “Come on,” the Uchiha said gruffly “you can come hang out in my office, this ass won’t bother you there if he knows what’s good for him.” (Madara was still Hashirama’s equal, for all that people sometimes forgot it and he wouldn't mind reminding Hashirama of it if he needed to) Tobirama didn’t even hesitate to stand- in an oddly animal way- and loped over to Madara to butt his head into the older man’s shoulder before slipping out of the room ahead of him. Madara sent a warning glare over his shoulder at Hashirama as he followed Tobirama out and ignored the deep pout on the Senju’s face, Hashirama would deal and _Madara would be telling Mito_.

Tobirama was prowling around Madara’s office when the older man entered and sent a thoughtful look at the Uchiha (oh my god, that tail, he was holding it off the floor with a loose curl at the end, it was _adorable_) before going back to poking around; Madara watched him for a moment before shrugging, Tobirama wasn’t upsetting anything, just picking things up and sniffing occasionally and he always put them down extremely carefully, so really better than most people Madara had in his office most of the time. Whatever, he could take care of himself, Madara had work to do.

(**Tobirama was so glad to be away from loud-oak-grabbing and even better with warm-cloves-safe who maybe wanted him around? Maybe just saving him from loud-oak-grabbing he smelled mad but not at Tobirama? Tobirama being good? Tobirama was trying.**

**Hair. Warm-cloves-safe hair needed to be groomed. Maybe warm-cloves-safe needed help? Wait. Wouldn’t like Tobirama touching it. Wrongfreak. But. long and tangled. Maybe….. maybe wouldn’t notice? Maybe Tobirama quiet warm-cloves-safe wouldn’t mind.**

**Hair was _soft_. _Soft._ Tobirama wanted to see what felt like on skin but being good wouldn’t he was wrongfreak and shouldn’t.**

**Warm-cloves-safe looking Tobirama in trouble? Wrongfreak. Would stop no? not mad? No? Tobirama being good? was _ok?_ Oh! Tobirama was allowed! Warm-cloves-safe was so nice to let touch.**)

Sometime after Madara had started working he felt a soft tug on his hair and looked up, twisting to figure out what his hair was caught on only to see slanted red eyes (huh, the iris was larger now, closer to cat proportions than human, and it was red as well, how had he never noticed that?) blinking at him. Um, what? Tobirama’s fingers were tangled in the end of his hair and it looked like he had been using his claw-nails to unpick the knots his hair always picked up minutes after he left the house; Tobirama looked down pulling his fingers free and sinking backwards with the _saddest fucking_ look Madara had ever seen, and he just- “Hey, it’s fine it you want to play with it, just don’t yank” Tobirama’s dropping ears perked up and his tail twitched as he peaked up at Madara through his white fringe, when Madara didn’t do anything he reached out slowly and started combing his fingers through the Uchiha’s hair again watching Madara closely for signs of irritation; Madara smiled a little (god he was _so cute_, it was a personality that he had seen hints of before, but seeing Tobirama like this with less reserve and fewer worries was… well. _wonderful_ honestly, the whimpering had even decreased a lot as he relaxed- thank the gods) and turned back to his work, the gentle tugs on his scalp quickly becoming soothing.

The Uchiha lost himself in his work (and some of Tobirama’s, he _wasn’t_ leaving it all for the Senju whenever Mito got him sorted) and the shockingly enjoyable sensation of light fingers in his hair; so it was something of a surprise to feel a brush against his leg, glancing down to see Tobirama firmly not looking at him even as he leaned his shoulder against Madara’s thigh. Madara hesitated (how was he supposed to react to this?) and he felt Tobirama’s muscles shift as he moved to pull away (_wait!_ That wasn’t what he _wanted!_) and dropped a slightly too rushed hand onto the white head, flinching a little at the heaviness with which he did it (he hadn’t meant to do that quite that hard); the albino went stiff against him for a moment before relaxing to lean heavily on Madara. The older man hesitated, he wasn’t sure… exactly what he was supposed to do now, he should probably work but was he supposed to... pet him? maybe? he must have heisted too long because Tobirama nudged his head firmly into Madara’s leg until the Uchiha carded his fingers through the startlingly rough hair, and then and_ then Tobirama started **purring**!_ (holy shit) Madara tilted his head thoughtfully, he wondered… tentatively he threaded chakra through his hand, letting it sink gently into Tobirama’s scalp slowly, ready to retract hand and chakra both at the first sign of displeasure but instead – instead Tobirama _melted_, his entire body seeming to sag as tension Madara hadn’t realized he was carrying slipping out of him, and the faint whimpering and pain-panting stopping to his great relief. Well then. He could do his paperwork one handed, it wasn’t like he was going to _stop_ now!

(**Tobirama was _happy. _Was warm and calm and safe and warm-cloves-safe-soft protected from loud-oak and sting-nettle and Tobirama hurt was low from warm-cloves giving him _sun/soft/safe_ sinking through his head and Tobirama didn’t want to move even if floor hard and could get get in warm-cloves-safe-soft lap? Be closer? Wrongfreak? Didn’t want to be wrongfreak. Wanted closer.**)

Madara sat back in his chair with a sigh, god, how did Tobirama deal with all the work? Madara wasn’t even taking that much of his over, he had recruited other help (let Izuna deal with paperwork to teach him better) and it was _still_ overwhelming, and that wasn’t even including every time he had been interrupted by someone working on something Tobirama oversaw (how many projects was he working on anyway?); how non functional would the village be in something permanent happened to Tobirama? More importantly, why wasn’t Tobirama getting more credit and why had Madara not been aware of how brilliant Tobirama was? Or how committed he was to the village? Or how hard he worked to make it work? Or the fact that Tobirama was so obsessive about helping the kids of every clan (_even the Uchiha_)? It was a travesty that he had never known how amazing the albino was, not really; it seemed like the _worst_ kind of travesty that he had never been aware of this, especially given how, well, how attractive Tobirama was. Oh Madara had sort of known, but Tobirama had always seemed to stern that it was (kind of) possible to ignore his exotic appeal (an appeal a large chunk of his clan- of the village- _somehow_ didn’t seem to see) and move on, but _now_; now when Tobirama was so much easier around him- he not only was he not in his armor, he was also missing the happuri Madara had never seen him without- and that pleased relaxed look on his sharp features…. _damn, he was **stunning**._ If only he could see this look when Tobirama was actually aware of what he was doing…. Sigh.

He was… less surprised then he could have been that Tobirama followed him out of the tower- hissing sharply at Hashirama when his brother came to get him and ducking behind Madara, who glared so fiercely that the idiot log actually backed off- and draped himself over Madara’s couch and watching as the Uchiha move around making dinner and settling in for the night, pannting again (that worried Madara) and his long tail swishing behind him over the couch (it was also insanely cute even- especially- when he was aware how useful that tail would be in maneuvering, maybe if Tobirama’s mind came back before his body reverted he could see if the younger man wanted to spar? It would be interesting to see how much it helped).

The Senju perked up a little when Madara dropped onto the floor in front of the couch to eat at the low table in front of it rather than the normal table (where Tobirama wouldn’t be comfortable at all), setting a plate on it with lightly cooked fish and a small amount of rice- he had no idea what Tobirama would/could eat, but fish seemed safe-, the younger man stared at it for a long moment, long enough Madara was beginning to get concerned, before reaching out hesitantly (did he think it wasn’t for him?) and hooking a bite on one long nail-claw and eating it quickly with a flash of a glace as he did (he thought Madara would take it away from him didn’t he. shit); when Madara didn’t react the Senju set to eating with sharp focus, finishing far before Madara and slithering up behind the other man slowly (like a cat that didn’t want him to notice something) and combing this long nails across the Uchiha’s scalp and reducing him to a puddle of tingling pleasure – _ooooh_. Oh that felt _amazing_. It also set the tone for the rest of the night, Tobirama following Madara wherever the older man went and draping himself over Madara whenever he stayed still long enough for Tobirama to wind himself around the Uchiha; leaning heavily on him (trusting him with his weight) and playing with his hair, and best of all _purring _whenever Madara gently pressed his chakra into his slim form (it was going to suck when he got better and Madara didn’t get to do this anymore) something that always seemed to ease whatever pain he was in.

(**_warm_. So warm. And the pain that was his constant companion even tamed warm-madara-cloves-safe chasing it away with _sun/soft/safe_, and didn’t seem to mind when Tobirama leaned on him. Tobirama wanted to stay close half understood urges telling him to get as close as he could-** _would he lose this when Madara couldn’t blame it on the seal and put up with it?_**\- and keep and stay closesoak up, safewarmhappyrelaxed**)

Tobirama’s insistence on staying close- and hissing at Hashirama and Izuna (and a few others Madara noted to keep an eye on)- lasted through the next day, forcing (well, sort of forcing) Madara to move his work to the couch in his office so that the younger man could curl up around Madara as he had the night before; Madara found that he was utterly unable to refuse anything that made the stress and pinch of pain fade from Tobirama’s face and his strong shoulders relax, also, that tail was amazing and he had been allowed to _pet it!_ it was _so soft!_ (also, Madara had had a religious experience, one he had captured with Sharingan thank all the gods. Because it turned out that- like his summons- Tobirama not only curled around him when he could, but also- _socute_\- well, the only way to put it was that he _nomed_ on his tail. Tucking the fluffy end in between his teeth when bored and relaxed. It was the _cutest fucking thing and Madara never wanted to see anything else_, this was the thing he wanted to see when he died. Holy shit.) So really the only thing Madara had a problem with was that he couldn’t see Tobirama being willing to get this close or relaxed if he was in full control, which _sucked_ because Madara was positive that he would like nothing better than that after the last few days; if he could convince Tobirama to give him the time of day… well he was going to do his best to woo the albino, Uchiha didn’t give up without trying damn it! (that only worked it they could get Tobirama _back_, Madara wanted to be able to properly talk to the Senju, wanted to see that spark of _ideas_ in clever red eyes) (it wasn’t like he hadn’t wondered, a little, about Tobirama before all of this anyway)

He was sitting reading through a large packet of papers with Tobirama draped over his lap sleeping as Madara threaded fingers and chakra through white hair when Mito knocked on his open door. Tobirama shifted slightly and slanted a glance over his shoulder as his tail flicked thoughtfully, but his ears didn’t go back and he resettled himself on top of Madara again easily enough so Madara sighed and waved the woman in setting his papers aside “What can I do for you Mito-hime?” she smiled her cat smile and drifted in to sit in the chair normally in front of his desk “So _this_ is where he’s been, I had wondered.” She murmured, looking at Tobirama with fond eyes. Madara frowned darkly “Well he’s not going to stay with Hashirama when the asshole keeps trying to pull his tail or poke at him because ‘he’s supposed to be pet’” Mito stared at him, shock clear on her face, “_He what?!” _she hissed, sounding remarkably like her brother-in-law; Madara shrugged, tired all of the sudden “You know how he gets, he’s an idealist with too little empathy and he forgets that other people aren’t him.” Mito pressed her lips together, anger writ large in her body language “Well. I shall _remind_ him then. I have my ways of dealing with him like this.” the dark fury in her eyes faded a little as Tobirama’s tail brushed against her arm (if Madara hadn’t spent so much time with him he would have thought it an accident) and she sighed, “I just hate that Tobirama always gets the brunt of it when Hashirama gets like this, I’ve never been able to convince him to tell me when it happens.”

Madara rubbed at his face, he had had a suspicion that that was true, but he wasn’t thrilled to hear it confirmed; he had seen it before, but never really noted it, the way that Hashirama got a bit rough with his brother, running over his requests and free time, forgetting that Tobirama needed sleep and food and _rest_ and couldn’t be working on every project that the older Senju came up with (and the too tight hugs, chronic pain and tight hugs were not great). “You have a way to deal with it?” he asked, skritching absently at the base of one furry ear, relishing the up tick in purring volume; Mito had a pleased look on her face that Madara didn’t want to know too much about as she responded “Yes. I walked into my marriage with my eyes open and I wasn’t about to put up with such idiocy from _my _husband. I’ll deal with it if you deal with Izuna.” Madara whimpered and dropped his head back on the couch, running a soothing hand down Tobirama’s back as the younger man shifted against him in worry, “Yeah, I have _no idea_ how to do it though. I don’t even know what his problem is really, he’s being _such a brat._” Mito laughed a little behind her sleeve, “Hurt pride, fear, and uncertainty about his place in the village. Stop spoiling him and give him something to do and I suspect he will shape up, maybe try setting him up to spar with Touka regularly, she will not put up with it.” He blinked at her, twisting his fingers around Tobirama’s tail gently as he thought that through, “That…. That might work. Why didn’t I just ask you earlier?” he asked, bewildered and relived; having a way to deal with Izuna- a plan- was a huge weight off his chest.

(not that he had any intention of letting Izuna off the hook, as soon as he could leave Tobirama alone without worrying and the other man was himself again he was going to kick both of their asses)

(**Tobirama was… Tobirama was tucking his face into warm-Madara-safe’s hair and shoulder, pretending his eyes weren’t pricklingwetsalty and he wasn’t relishing firmgentalwarm hand softlycarefully brushing up and down the length of his spine. He still hurt and thoughts slippedflitteddrained as he had them but, he knew warm-Madara-safe wasn’t his- wrongfreak- and he _wanted_)**


	3. Chapter 3

“So what’s the prognosis on helping Tobirama?” Madara asked Mito, and she sighed, leaning back in her chair “It’s hard to say, I don’t quite know what Tobirama was working on and it misfired anyway so I’m not sure how much it would help, but there was definitely a summons seal and the sage mode jutsu traces which tells me a little, mostly that it will probably fade- sage mode wears off eventually- at least the mind and chakra effects. The physical…” she trailed off looking at Tobirama’s fluffy tail “I don’t know. It’s hard to say but the changes are pretty integrated so they might never be reversed safely.” Madara went cold, he- god. How was Tobirama going to react to waking up in a body that was suddenly changed so dramatically? He, fuck he hopped Tobirama had more support than it looked like because he was going to need it (he would love to be a part of that support if he could make it happen), at the very least he could keep Hashirama off of Tobirama’s back and make Izuna _grow the fuck up_.

“Madara?” he blinked out of his thoughts to Mito’s raised eyebrow and Tobirama draped over his chest cuffing softly in his ear; he took a deep breath and wrapped his arms around Tobirama, grounding himself in the other man’s weight and strength for a moment to focus. “What?” he asked gruffly and Mito sighed “Have you noticed any change in him?” she asked somewhat irritated, he frowned at her but answered anyway “Somewhat, he’s in a lot of pain pretty much all the time as far as I can tell though chakra seems to help, but the Ayme said that that wasn’t because of the seal change. Otherwise? He seems to be relaxing and recognizing more, but it’s hard to say why and he certainly isn’t pulling away from me so he can’t be coming back that much yet.” He… probably hadn’t kept all of his disappointment out of his voice. Drat. Mito smirked at him “I wouldn’t bet on that, I know Tobirama wouldn’t have any problem being close to you even when in total control of himself.” Madara perked up, “Really?”

Mito giggled delicately (she wondered if he knew what he looked like with Tobirama draped over him asleep, arms over his shoulders and face tucked into Madara’s hair with his long tail wrapped around the Uchiha’s arm, it was _adorable_) and nodded, she had been watching her little brother pine after Madara for _years_ and had no qualms about giving him a little push, especially given how pleased Madara looked at that; they both deserved good things and she couldn’t think of anyone that would treat Tobirama better, not as long as Madara loved him (an Uchiha’s love was a possessive thing unlike the far to self-sacrificing love of the Senju and was carefully horded for a jealous few unlike the overflowing love of the Uzumaki, perfect for Tobirama and his worrying streak of self-sacrifice).

[**Tobirama hadn’t slept this well or this deeplycalmsafe in longer than he could rememberdreamhope, and two daysmomentstofast wasn’t long enough for him too feel satisfied, not in the slightest. It was tainted by the knowlegwieghthurt that he was basically lyingdeceivingguilty to Madarawarmsafe in hiding not telling the olderwiserbetter man that he was largely recovered at this point, he knew Madarasteamgental was ready for Tobirama to leave him alone- he had asked Mitoseastrong about it again today and he had payed more attention to it then he had yesterday, enough to know Madaraclovespassion kept askinggwantinghopping that Tobirama would be well enough to leave him alonebetterwithoutannoyance; and while Tobirama was definitely not fully back to himselfnormalwrong he _had_ regained enough of his faculties to follow conversation and read again (even if talking was… hard. But he had never been good at it before so what did it matter) and that was enough to make him cognizant of his circumstances and of the way he was taking advantage of Madaracleanhonest’s charity, and make him feel a bit dirtylierfoolish; but the olderstrongersafer man was so _warmsafecareful_ and it was _adictivecravedwanted_. Foolishfreakishwrong. (also, being allowedpermittedforgiven to play with Madarafirmprotector’s hair…. _Wow_)]**

After two days of Tobirama being so close _all the time_ Madara was going _insane_, it was _wonderful_ and having to go without it while he (hopefully) wooed the younger man was going to _suck_. He had gotten so used to it, used to the long tail wrapping around him and Tobirama knowing when Madara’s (always short) temper was fraying and just inserting himself into the situation and defusing it (Madara hadn’t been this calm or felt this supported in _years_, if ever), he was used to Tobirama choosing him above all others, used to being able to interfere when Hashirama was getting to much for his more sensitive younger brother (though whatever Mito had done had brought Hashirama to heel more thoroughly than Madara had realized was possible, she needed to do it more often his quite more centered demeanor and reduced mokuton had been a relief); and all the things he was used to now he didn’t _want_ to loose (didn’t want to loose this Tobirama that- for all the pain he was in when Madara couldn’t run his chakra through him- was somehow less burdened).

But Mito had found a way to speed up the lingering effects of the seal on his mind and Madara _knew_ how much his faculty mattered to Tobirama, knew that the younger man would be horrified if the was aware of his suppressed ability to think; after all Tobirama had never been caught in a genjutsu and avoided being so with a ferocity that was a little alarming (though he had never avoided Uchiha eyes, leaning on his sensors strength to free him if they ever managed to catch him- they never had), so Madara _couldn’t _do anything that would delay the return of Tobirama’s self, he couldn’t (even if the idea of not seeing anymore tail nomming again made him so sad it was _pathetic_\- but he looked so _cute_ with his face tucked into his fluffy tail, and when he looked up with it in his teeth it made Madara feel like he was going to have a heart attack from cute overload- at least he had it tucked away in his Sharingan). And so he was walking back to the lab where it had all started with Tobirama prowling around him, tail flicking back and forth and sharp eyes watching any observers intently; if there was one thing that made Madara feel a bit better it was the fact that this had done nothing to harm Tobirama’s reputation of badassery, had in fact increased it probably given how he wasn’t taking as much care to bend to other people’s sensibilities in things like using doors and giving warming before just _appearing_ behind people and scaring them out of their _minds_ (Madara loved it, loved the more feral side and the less self conscious set to his shoulders).

Mito was waiting for them in the lab, standing over a large seal array set up over and around Tobirama’s original experiment and carefully balanced to use the old seal and wind it back on itself- clever- and making the last few touches to it. Tobirama froze at the doorway for a moment, something odd flickering over his eyes before he stepped into the lab and poked thoughtfully as the seal; Mito looked up, smiling a little at both of them and picking her way through the array over to them, “Are you ready then?” she asked, the glint in her eyes worrying Madara a little. He swallowed “Yes” (No) “I’m sure Tobirama is more than ready to be back to normal.” Mito hummed thoughtfully looking over him and then at Tobirama as he rejoined them. The albino draped himself over Madara’s chest, nuzzling into his dark hair and tugging at it with inquisitive fingers; Madara grunted slightly when he took he full weight of the slimmer man and rubbed a hand up the narrow back, enjoying the way the long tail curled loosely around his waist, this was the last time ho would get this and he wanted to enjoy it damnit!

After a minuet (or more?) Mito coughed and Madara sighed but began peeling Tobirama off of him, as soon as the Senju figured out what he wanted he shrank back, looking away with that fucking sad expression on his face that made Madara want to _hit_ something; he didn’t get a chance to do anything to make Tobirama happy again (the whimpering and panting was back, _fuck_) before he looked over at Mito with a chuff and at her direction picked his way into the seal (even reduced Tobirama was astonishingly smart, it made Madara feel oddly proud). Madara felt as though he should do something, _say _something, but he couldn’t find the words and after a long look Mito turned to the seal and raised her chakra.

[**Tobirama knew he should be pleased to be free of the mental parts of the jutsu gone wrong, and he was sort of, but all he could think about was what he was loosing; warmth, comfort, a place to rest where he was safe, someone that he didn’t have to be strong and stern for but accepted it when he was, honesty emotion and passion he so missed, things he didn’t exactly have now except by subterfuge but- but he wanted, fool that he was. Mitowatermetal waved him forward and Madaravolcanovent stepped back- like he had divested himself of Tobirama as soon as he could- and Tobirama- **

**It had been _fun_ was the thing. Oh it had been many other things as well, but it was the fun that had surprised him most; it was seeing Madara bite back snickers when he slipped up behind unsuspecting shinobi and chuffed right behind them and they jumped out of their _skin_, it was hiding in tall spaces- jumping was stupid easy now- and waiting until Hashiramabrightvibrating entered the room before _accidentally_ dropping things on him, it was freaking Izunacoalallspice out by being as physical with Madaraclovessafe as he could whenever the younger man was near and feeling Madaraluminescentcinnamon shake as he tried not to laugh at Izunabittersoralpetrifyedwood’s high pitched squeaking- the little shit deserved it, he _knew_ better than to interrupt Tobirama and just hadn’t listened because he wanted something- as his face got redder and redder. They had actually managed to make the younger Uchihaclanwarmfiercecontrol collapse once when Tobirama pressed himself as close as he could to Madarasteamvelvet’s back and wrapped his tail around the older man- fucking thing had a mind of it’s own, and no Tobirama _wasn’t fond of it. not at all._**

**-Tobirama stepped forward and knelt, feeling chakrasoulstuffstarpower wash over him and pick at the edges of his _self_. Unraveling a twist- truth- in the deepest part of him. undoing him. breaking him**]

When the light faded Tobirama was laying in the center of the seal curled tight into himself and totally limp, Madara shifted forward before forcing himself to stillness, he didn’t want to mess this up; though- “Mito, he still has a tail” the Uzumaki sighed, “I was afraid of that, of permanent changes, can you see if the ears are still there?” Madara frowned, leaning forward to see more closely (his back was to Madara, like he still trusted the older man to watch it for him) “I don’t think so, but it’s hard to tell.” Mito pressed his lips together, “All we can do it wait I guess, see what he’s like when he wakes up. If the tail stayed then other things many have as well, but the traces of it in his chakra are gone so his mind should be restored.” She said softly, wiping the lines of the seals away in spots to deactivate it. Madara looked at the slim back, now that the Senju was back to normal(ish) he really had no good reason to stick around, he just – well. he could go beat Izuna into the ground for a while that normally made him feel better and the little shit deserved it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> been having more chronic pain then usual so I guess I needed to inflict it on someone else, it ended up sadder than I intended...

Ok. Madara thought, ok this sucks, really, _really, **sucks**_. He wanted Tobirama back and he hadn’t even seen the younger man for a week and a half because the Senju had been staying home, and Madara understood that, he had a lot to adjust to the Uchiha knew- Mito had told him that while the ears and most bone changes were gone, as well as the nails; the tail, blood count, and eyes, where still prominent and there was some mental echoes, instincts that Tobirama had no idea how to control- but Madara just wished that he was allowed to _help_. He wanted to be there and comfort Tobirama, he wanted to _help_ and be allowed to take care of him; after all Madara had always needed people that he could take care of, it comforted him to think that he could- and was welcome to- help those he cared about, he had been allowed to do that constantly for over forty eight hours and now the adjustment back was painful (was Tobirama still in pain? Could Madara’s chakra help him now like it had before? Was he still whining alone and without Madara to make him feel better?). Even Hashirama was subdued- he had even _thanked _Madara for taking care of Tobirama- quiet and down looking without slipping into his normal moping; it worried Madara a lot, if Tobirama was having a hard enough to time that Hashirama was effected by it he must have been _really_ down, for heaven’s sake Hashirama had even been trying to get all of his paperwork done on time without complaining! Not once! Just muttering about not wanting to dump it on Tobirama when Madara asked (though the Paper Problem had definitely not gone away, Hashirama just wailed less when he was called to task about it and had to unfold the origami) even though paperwork had been disappearing from the younger Senju’s desk and then reappearing the next day completed and ready for use. Madara _hated_ whatever it was that was keeping Tobirama away from the Tower (please let there not be any shame, but no one had seen him, no one but Mito and probably Hashirama, not even his beloved students).

* * *

Tobirama curled up tighter (he was missing someone to watch his back now, alone and unsafe) trying not to chew at his tail- he didn’t know what to think of that self-soothing method he seemed to have been stuck with- or whimper, he still wasn’t used to the greater range of noises he could make as a left over from the jutsu, eventually he would probably get interested in the fact that he could still purr even with a mostly human physique but right now all he wanted was to get the pain under control and to have Madara (warmsafe-) back.

While his mind was back with only lingering instincts to show the episode (but he full had cognition back, his brain something he could rely on again) and the only major change being his new tail (he had a theory about why that had stuck around out of everything but didn’t want to tell Mito that it was still around because it made him feel better and made communication <strike>at least with</strike> <strike>Madara</strike> easier)- even the eyes were mostly cosmetically different given that he had started from a place of light sensitivity- he should have been able to move past this; able to do his work properly and see his students again, able to tell Izuna how _fucking imbecilic _he had been, able to circulate his chakra correctly to handle the chronic pain again, but he was just, just _so tired!_ <strike>All he wanted was to sleep draped over Madara again</strike> he pressed his face to the bed and shifted until all the light was blocked out by his tail and panted into the mattress, giving up on keeping the thready whimper behind his teeth, there was no one here to know anyway.

* * *

Mito’s jaw clenched, this _was not ok,_ and she wasn’t going to stand for it anymore. After all she had taken care of everything else; she had disciplined her husband, she had talked with Touka about how much Izuna needed a firm hand in his life to get him under control and didn’t she think it would be good to have a new sparing partner? (Izuna had been black and blue and _covered_ in dirt last time she saw him, but more relaxed than she had ever seen, a happy dazed look in his eyes- though she was admittedly still mad at him and had enjoyed seeing Madara slam him into the dirt while giving him a much needed talking too before sort of ignoring him.) So really if she could deal with them and work on the seal to give Tobirama back his mind _and _help with her brother-in-law’s projects then there was no reason she couldn’t make this right. Especially when doing to would be so easy, after all she knew exactly what Tobirama was whimpering for and was positive that it was enthusiastically reciprocated (Madara’s pinning wasn’t quite as sad as Tobirama’s keening but it made her want to pat him and give him a hug and a cookie, a feeling she needed to _stop_).

* * *

The sudden click as his door shut startled Madara out of his <strike>daydreaming</strike> thoughts and he blinked stupidly at Mito for a moment before collecting himself, “Ah, um, Mito! What, erm, what can I do for you today?” one fine red eyebrow arched and Madara cringed a little, yeah, that was stupid sounding with all his stumbling and fumbling. She sighed and sat gracefully, “It’s about Tobirama” and just like that she had his full attention, “he’s not doing well and I… well, I was wondering if you could help given that he showed a deep preference for you while under the seal. Assuming you’re willing to help after he forced his company on you so much.” The last bit was added as an after thought but Madara felt fury slam through him- he had never thought that _Mito_\- “_He did no such thing!_” Madara snarled drawing in breath to yell when Mito looked him in the eye and spoke “Well he doesn’t know that now does he” Madara blinked at her, falling back in his chair ungracefully “he is under the impression that the only reason you put up with him was because of your friendship with Hashirama and were just as glad to be rid of him.” Madara gapped at her, how had Tobirama decided _that? _“But- I- _what?!_ he was- and so _cute_\- and, but I” Mito sighed at his spluttering, “Well then, he will never _ask _for help, not when he thinks it is charity and not what you want (you’ll have to not let him turn you away) but he is in rather a lot of pain and I am tired of hearing him crying because he doesn’t have you.” Madara was out of his chair and though the window as soon as the last word registered, Tobirama was _crying?!_ And Madara could help? Well then everything else would fucking wait.

Tobirama’s house on the quiet edge of the Senju district was dim when he slipped the door open and kicked off his sandals but as soon as he stepped farther in he could hear it, a faint exhausted, hitching whimper that tore Madara’s heart right open. Madara’s heart took and even greater beating when opening the door showed the pale Senju curled up tight with his tail tucked over his face, shivering and whimpering and with his shoulders shaking a little; he was so clearly in pain and so clearly exhausted and Madara didn’t think just sat next to his head and ran his finger though white hair and let his chakra sink out. Tobirama whimpered again, but it was an easier sound, more relief as he pushed into Madara’s hand than the overwhelming pain that it had been before; even so he didn’t move, curled up so tight it couldn’t be at all comfortable; Madara licked his lips, he seemed to be helping and Tobirama seemed so tired as to be fairly out of it but…. he sighed and shifted until he was lounging against the headboard and coaxed Tobirama out of his ball with long strokes down his back and warm chakra pressed into him, gently easing the slimmer man into his lap to drape over Madara’s chest as he so often had before when the seal was at its strongest. Tobirama shivered against him, shaking and whimpering a little still, but Madara knew those sounds, that was the strange aftershocks of pain that lingered even after the pain eased, time and warmth was what his Senju need.

The afternoon passed like that, Tobirama eventually falling all the way into exhausted sleep still shivering a little even with one of Madara’s hands pressed against his lower back and letting chakra sink down into spine and hips- a place Tobirama carried his pain for some reason- and rubbing the other hand up and down his too prominent spine. Madara fell into a doze himself in between chakra pulses when Tobirama began shifting uncomfortably- the problem with chronic pain was that once it got ahead of you it was so very hard to get it under control again, that and the way that it exhausted the body and mind, Tobirama was used to pain, training hurt and he had certainly been tortured before, but there was a purpose and a way out normally, this kind of long term pain was so very hard to defend against because it just _never stopped_\- as his pain started to overcome Madara’s chakra (it was so odd that that helped, it wasn’t like he was using healing chakra or something that should help); he had a lot to think trying to fit together everything Mito had and hadn’t said. The implications… that Tobirama might actually be interested in Madara but holding back because, well she had said that the younger man thought that Madara would be glad to be rid of him, which couldn’t be more untrue. So maybe Tobirama was interested (Madara was having a hard time believing he could be that lucky) and Madara had a chance, at the very least he was going to be allowed to be closer now that he knew that Tobirama needed him (he was not going to let Tobirama hurt himself because he was worried about _Madara_) and that would give him a better place to work from.

* * *

Tobirama swam back to awareness slowly, his body ached distantly but only a little and any time it rose up a wave of warmth rolled through him and soothed his sparking nerves; he was warm and felt _safe_, felt like home, felt like- ! – Tobirama surged to awareness, stiffening in shock and then whining when that sent pain rippling down his bones, “Hey, no, none of that. You’re ok, it’s just me, relax.” Tobirama shivered at the warm rumble of Madara’s voice, relaxing slowly into his chest, unable to keep himself from pressing himself as close as he could, greedily soaking up the older man’s presence. Madara hummed deeply and it shivered through Tobirama’s bones as the hand on his spine soothed down his back, “How do you feel?” he asked softly, Tobirama pressed his face more firmly into the Uchiha unwilling to look him in the face for the this conversation “Fine” he said tiredly; Madara’s hand skimmed up his back again and gripped the back of his neck gently, Tobirama’s mouth fell open against the Uchiha’s shoulders- thank gods he was covered in enough cloth not to feel it- and relaxation rolled through him, “Don’t do that, how do you _really_ feel, not what do you think I want to hear.”

Tobirama hesitated, but “I- better now. Thank you.” He said, unable to keep his voice from sounding stilted, but there was no frustration in Madara’s chakra, not like most people that took his difficulty speaking as coldness (he didn’t mean it too words were just hard and emotion was rarely easy to communicate); Madara hummed softly “Why didn’t you have someone tell me I could help? You shouldn’t have let it get this bad.” The Uchiha asked and Tobirama shifted uncomfortably, but there was no censure in his voice, nothing to imply that he though less of Tobirama for not asking (no blame, he was so tired of blame because of things he didn’t know how to control) “I didn’t want to be a bother after I monopolized your time so much, it must have been annoying” he could feel this tail twitching uncertainly and was torn between being glad it gave a window into his emotions and shame about… about something. Madara scratched softly as the base of Tobirama’s skull and sighed a little “You’re not a bother, I… I really enjoyed- really _do _enjoy- your company and missed it this last week. I’d- um- I’d like you around more if you’d like that as well” Tobirama blinked, shocked and shivered, tilting his head farther into Madara’s neck (he was _so grateful _that Madara wasn’t making him make eye contact) and whispering “You- you _would_? _Why_?” he couldn’t keep the bewilderment out of his voice (did Madara shiver when he spoke? <strike>Because of his breath?!</strike>) and the older man cupped his head gently (he was _so_ gentle no one was like that with him, _no one_) “Because you’re amazing and fascinating and beautiful and blindingly intelligent and you _care_” Madara said warmly, “But- no one thinks that, I’m stern and cold and-“ “You’re reserved and controlled and you don’t emote very much, that has no effect on who you are inside or what you feel. I-“ Madara shifted and pulled in a deep breath, Tobirama shifting with it “-I’m falling in love with you, Tobirama. Just, give me a chance?”

Tobirama reeled back, staring in shock, that couldn’t- “You- you are?” Madara nodded firmly, not quite meeting Tobirama’s eyes and- he- Tobirama leaned down and did something he had never really thought he would; he kissed someone, he kissed _Madara_, he still didn’t really get it (**he was wrongfreak**) but this close he could feel the honesty in Madara’s chakra and somehow, somehow the older man _meant _it and Tobirama wanted to grab that with both hands for however long he could keep it. Madara shivered a the brush of lips, hand tightening on Tobirama’s neck and firming on his spine and a deep sound slipping out as he showed Tobirama- always a fast learner- how to _kiss_, how to shift it into something deeper and Tobirama whimpered (for once not from pain) as the sensation spiked through him delightfully. This was _wonderful!_

* * *

Madara moaned again, the increasingly confident press of Tobirama’s lips setting him on _fire_, fuck but he was lucky the albino was willing to do this (and it seemed to be his first time, _wonderful_ to Madara’s possessive nature)! Tobirama drew back, his clever red eyes a little dazed but very warm “I- I don’t I-“ he stumbled, trying to get out words that wouldn’t come and Madara tugged him down to press their foreheads together, closing his eyes to lighten the load and relishing the tail he could feel wrapped around the leg that he had propped up. “Hey, it’s ok, do you want this?” he asked gently, Tobirama relaxed heavily against him and nodded (Madara knew he must be wearing a very silly grin) “Do you want this with me?” nod “Ok, then we’ll sort the rest out as we go, there’s no timeline and if it’s hard for you to say that’s alright.” Tobirama whined, an animal noise as he nuzzled closer, breath hitching closer to his ear “Wanted this a long time” he whispered with some difficulty and Madara tugged him back a little to catch his lips again, trying to smile and kiss all at once.

Tobirama sighed, shifting in a pleased stretch and gasped a little as Madara’s hand slid lower with the movement; it was a good gasp though and Madara took advantage of it to bite gently at his lower lip making Tobirama shiver _hard_, whining again and chasing Madara’s tongue into a deeper kiss, spit slick and warm, the albino shivering all over and pressing in the older man’s hand. Madara pressed more firmly on the albino’s tailbone where it connected to the long tail and- holy shit- Tobirama _moaned_ rocking into the press and then into Madara’s hips; oh, oh _wow, _that was- _hng_\- that felt _amazing_ and Tobirama seemed totally on boarded, lapping at Madara’s lips in between little panting breaths (good panting this time, not the pained ones that Madara _hated_) and Madara hadn’t _ever_ been this hard rolling his own hips up into the pressure and groaning deeply at the feel, _god- this- ah- **so** **good-**_ he never wanted to stop and dug the heel on his hand in at the base of Tobirama’s tail, snapping a lick of chakra through is hand and- and Tobirama _keened_, pulling his mouth away to arch into the feeling, mouth dropped open in pleasure and eyes dazed. Oh eternal flame, he- he could probably make Tobirama come just with this, he- _hng_\- he wanted that _so much_. Madara pulled Tobirama closer with the hand at the base of his skull licking at his lips and then nipping his way down to that china pale neck when Tobirama was too out of it to kiss, sucking a dark mark high under the hinge of his jaw where everyone would be able to see it; the rush of possessiveness made his blood burn hotter and that combined with the look on Tobirama’s face as Madara pushed him over the edge with nothing more than his hand, chakra and little pressure- well. Madara spiraled right over after him, head snapping back as pleasure raced through him.

Tobirama collapsed over him, pleased little mewls slipping through lips Madara had bitten red, warm and heavy and the best weight Madara had ever been entrusted with. (Later there would be pain management and learning how to ask for help- the tail would be useful-, and dealing with their respective siblings, later there would be seal investigation and long conversations, and later- as now- there would be Tobirama trusting Madara to hold his weight and Madara relaxing into the relief of knowing there was someone at his back more than willing to hit hard and fast.)


End file.
